Complicated Kidney Transplant

With today’s advances in anti-rejection drugs, tissue-typing and good matching are no longer essential for a successful transplant. Patients who have had previous transplants, pregnancies or multiple blood transfusions may develop antibodies in their blood that make it difficult for them to receive a transplant as their bodies tend to reject most available kidneys.

Due to improvements in donor-specific screening and pre-transplant processes, more accurate detection and identification of potentially harmful donor antibodies is now possible.

Depending on your condition, your specialist will either recommend that you undergo

Blood group incompatible (ABO-incompatible) transplant

HLA-antibody incompatible (sensitised patient) transplant

These transplant options include a series of special pre-transplant procedures like plasmapheresis – a process that removes antibodies from the blood that may cause the body to reject the transplanted kidney.

If you have been diagnosed with end-stage kidney failure and have a pre-existing condition that will cause you to reject a transplanted kidney or are unable to find a live donor with a matching blood group, your surgeon may suggest a complicated kidney transplant. While there is no age limit for this transplant, you must be medically fit to undergo the operation.

A successful complicated kidney transplant can save your life if you are suffering from end-stage kidney disease. In 2008, we performed the first successful blood group incompatible adult living donor kidney transplant in Southeast Asia, helping the patient recover his health and prolonging his life. Since the transplant, the patient has recovered his muscular strength, completed his diploma studies and held down his job for 4 years now without taking any medical leave.

To date, we have performed more than 10 cases of blood group incompatible kidney transplants with a first-year survival rate of approximately 96%, similar to that of standard transplants. With today’s advancements, kidney transplant patients can expect to live for more than 20 years.

We look forward to welcoming you to a comforting and healing environment at Gleneagles Hospital. With our skilled team of specialists and friendly staff, we can assure the most comfortable, welcoming care for you and those closest to you.